E3 2010 games to watch: Bodycount preview

The games we're looking forward to seeing at E3 2010, in a twice-weekly round up

It’s that time of year again. E3 is coming and the hype train is beginning to hiss. In preparation for this year’s maelstrom of new video game delights, which starts on June the 15th, we’re running a twice-weekly series of features highlighting the big hitters you’ll want to keep an eye on at the show.

Some you’ll know, some you won’t, but all will require your complete and undivided attention. So tune in to GamesRadar every Wednesday and Saturday, and have that attention primed and ready.

Today, we’re looking at Codemasters' blistering FPS, Bodycount.

Why Bodycount is one
to watch:

It%26rsquo;s a new FPS from Stuart Black, the designer of last generation%26rsquo;s much-loved and completely gaga bullet-splosion Black. He%26rsquo;s moved from Burnout dev Criterion to DIRT 2 creator Codemasters, and once more he%26rsquo;s promising to make shooters ludicrous again.

The game is set in the real world, but Black is adamant that he%26rsquo;s eschewing this generation%26rsquo;s obsession with real-life warfare and realistic combat painted in 100 different shades of brown grit. The reason? Realism is too depressing and he wants his shooter to be pure fun, with its balls so far out they%26rsquo;re in danger of coming clean off.

The carnage is going to be excessive. Seriously. Dropping bull-bombs on a city made entirely of china shops excessive. If you%26rsquo;ve played Black, you%26rsquo;ll have an idea of what we mean. But imagine that multiplied by current-gen looks and physics. %26lsquo;Gurgle.%26rsquo; That%26rsquo;s all you can say, isn%26rsquo;t it? And rightly so.

Speaking of looks, Bodycount promises to look as eye-burstingly kinetic as it plays. Realistic colour palettes are being smashed clean out of a ninth-floor window in favour of bright, stylised, vibrancy. Expect explosive washes of colour like you%26rsquo;d get during a knife-fight at a clown convention.

Bodycount is going to take environmental destruction to a new level. We know you%26rsquo;ve heard that before, but we%26rsquo;re not talking about just dropping a building with a few grenades. We%26rsquo;re talking about infiltrating buildings by precision-ripping new doorways through walls with just your machine gun fire. We%26rsquo;re told you%26rsquo;ll be able to sculpt the whole environment to your will, destroying buildings and cover alike with your butter-knifing bullets, and apparently every weapon will destroy things in its own unique way.

Bodycount is also bringing a first-person leaning system (like the one seen in the original F.E.A.R., only properly analogue). But don%26rsquo;t think that implies you%26rsquo;ll be hiding behind cover the whole time. That sort of thing is the antithesis of Bodycount%26rsquo;s raucous carnival of destruction. This game is all about speed, aggression and spectacle.

A combo system rewards fast kill-strings with intel, and that intel rewards you with the likes of chopper support and armed UAVs. And when they strike, it%26rsquo;ll be up-close and personal. Forget the distant killers of Modern Warfare 2. These heavily-armoured death-puppies will be like having a rocket-spewing attack dog hovering loyally at your right hand.

So what do you think? Are you already pumped for Bodycount? Is it on your E3 2010 must-see list? Or is something else in your sights? Let us know in the comments, or through our portals onFacebookandTwitter.